Father jailed 30 years for raping daughter, sexually assaulting step-daughter over a decade

The man, who cannot be named to protect the victims’ identities, pleaded guilty in the High Court to charges of rape, aggravated sexual assault and molestation. (Photo: Getty Images)

A 53-year-old father who sexually assaulted his step-daughter for nearly 10 years and raped his biological daughter while his wife was in the shower was on Friday (16 November) sentenced to 30 years’ jail.

The man, who cannot be named to protect the victims’ identities, pleaded guilty in the High Court to six charges – one count each of rape, aggravated sexual assault by penetration, and molestation; and three counts of molestation of a minor under 14.

Another 11 molestation charges were taken into consideration in sentencing.

The court heard that the man worked as a warehouse supervisor and married the biological mother of the two victims in 2001, when the step-daughter was around two years old. The mother’s previous husband died in 1999.

Sexually abused step-daughter from 2007

The man sexually assaulted the step-daughter from the time when the girl was in Primary 4 in 2007, till when she was 19 in late 2016.

On one occasion in 2007, after the girl had returned home from school, the man asked her to sit on his lap and showed her a pornographic video while he groped her.

A few months later, he performed a sexual act on her in the master bedroom. He continued sexually assaulting her on multiple occasions.

After a sex education class in Primary 6, the victim began resisting the man’s advances by pretending to sleep on her stomach, crossing her legs, or kicking him. Still, he persisted.

Sometime in 2010, when the step-daughter was in Secondary 1 and sleeping in her bedroom, the man removed her pants and performed a sexual act on her. She kicked his arm with her leg to make him stop, but he was undeterred.

Sexually abused biological daughter from 2014

In 2014, the man started molesting his biological daughter when she was 12. He started with kissing and progressed to groping her from early 2015.

On one occasion, while the daughter was sleeping, the man groped her. She was aware of his actions, but pretended to continue sleeping.

Sometime in 2016, the daughter was walking through the living room to leave the flat for school when the man stopped her and made her lie down on the sofa. She told him she was menstruating, and he performed a sexual act on her.

He raped his daughter in her bedroom sometime between September and November 2016 while his wife was showering in another room. She was then 14. He disregarded her pleas to stop, halting only when he realised his wife had finished showering.

In late 2016, after the 16-year-old daughter attended a sex education programme in school, she told the father that she did not like what he was doing to her. He stopped sexually abusing his daughters.

The man’s crimes came to light in April 2017 when the step-daughter made a police report after an argument with her parents.

A psychiatrist who examined the daughter assessed that she was “disgusted, disappointed and angry with her father for what he had done to her”. The daughter said she had repetitive thoughts and momentary flashbacks of the sexual assaults, which made her feel upset and sad. She also told the psychiatrist that she did not report the sexual abuse earlier as she feared that her family would break up.

The punishment for rape is up to 20 years’ jail, and a fine or caning. The penalty for aggravated sexual assault by penetration is between eight and 20 years’ jail, with not less than 12 strokes of the cane.

The punishment for molestation is up to two years’ jail, a fine, caning, or any combined punishment. The penalty for molestation involving a minor under 14 is up to five years’ jail, a fine, caning, or any combined punishment.